


Better Than a Superhero

by rsadelle



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-30
Updated: 2014-06-30
Packaged: 2018-02-06 19:45:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1870077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rsadelle/pseuds/rsadelle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When they're headed out onto the ice, Alex bumps Crosby's shoulder and says, very seriously, "Your sister much prettier than Bennett, but not as pretty as my Masha," and gets rewarded with Crosby's laughter echoing off the glass.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Better Than a Superhero

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dine/gifts).



> For dine, who asked for something about Ovi. This is mostly about my Crosby family feelings; I hope you still like it.
> 
> Thanks to v_greyson for helpful title suggestions. Title from Marc Brown: "Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero."
> 
> I have handwaved everything about how Ovi ended up on the Pens because I couldn't come up with anything other than magic.

"My game is not that bad," Bortuzzo protests.

Alex joins in the laughter that rolls around the locker room. He might know these guys that well yet, but he's seen enough to know that's a lie.

"At least," Bortuzzo says over the laughter, "I would never have to bring my sister as my date to an awards show."

Alex glances around the room; he doesn't know Crosby well enough yet to know if that's going to be a problem. Most of the guys are shaking their heads and chuckling.

"No," Crosby agrees seriously, his lips twitching like he can't quite hold onto the expression. "You'd have to bring Sunshine. And he's not as pretty as Taylor."

The laughter ripples around the room again, and Bennett looks completely torn, like he wants to defend his honor but knows it's not a good idea to talk about his captain's sister's looks.

When everyone's attention has turned to their own preparations to get on the ice, Alex asks Zhenya about it. Advantage to being the only Russians in the room: they can have private conversations. "He never brings a date."

"No," Zhenya says, unconcerned.

"But-"

"Leave it," Zhenya says.

Alex raises his eyebrows. "But, Zhenya, I only want to make sure our captain-"

"You only want to interfere," Zhenya says, which is only a little bit true. "Sid is Sid. Leave it."

Alex isn't sure exactly what that's supposed to mean, but when they're headed out onto the ice, he bumps Crosby's shoulder and says, very seriously, "Your sister much prettier than Bennett, but not as pretty as my Masha," and gets rewarded with Crosby's laughter echoing off the glass.

*

Zhenya often stays after practice with Crosby, the two of them doing who knows what kind of drills. It doesn't take long for Alex to catch on to which practices they stay after. He also knows Zhenya well enough to know when his knee is bothering him.

"Go take care of your knee," Alex tells him at the end of a practice where Zhenya is grimacing and Crosby has the hard set to his mouth that means he's staying to run drills until someone kicks him out. "I'll stay."

Zhenya rolls his eyes. "He doesn't need babysitting."

"Don't worry," Alex calls as he skates away from Zhenya. "I'll take good care of your baby captain." Alex slides to a stop next to where Crosby is taking a water break at the bench and taps his stick against Crosby's skate. "What drills we do now?"

Crosby looks at him with truly unwarranted suspicion. "You're staying?"

"I'm still on the ice," Alex says cheerfully. He grabs a water bottle; hydration is very important. "What drills you want to do?"

The suspicion turns into calculation, and Crosby leads him out onto the ice for work on slapshots.

"Done being angry?" Alex asks when Crosby deems them done with a series of shooting drills whose importance are ranked on a scale only known to him.

"I'm not," Crosby starts to protest, and then he backs out of it, probably realizing how unbelievable a denial would be. "Not really," he says. "But thanks."

"Hmm," Alex says. "Why are you angry?"

Crosby squints at him over his water bottle.

"Sid," Alex says, hands spread wide, "we teammates, friends." He doesn't laugh at Crosby's disbelieving twitch at the second word.

Surprisingly enough, though, it works, and Crosby heaves out a sigh. "I want to give money to the CWHL and they won't take it."

Alex nods, because he is familiar with people being weird about money. "Someone else you could give to instead?"

" _No_ ," Crosby says with particular emphasis. "It's for Taylor. I want her to be able to play."

And now Alex is confused. "Taylor plays now."

"Yeah," Crosby says, "in college. She gets four years, maybe an extra one if she makes the Olympic team, although that's tough for goalies. A few women are playing in professional men's leagues, but only ones who are already well established. The CWHL is trying to make money so they can pay players, but they don't want one-time donations, they want corporate sponsorship and media deals and I can't give them that."

It's a lot of words said very quickly in English, but Alex gets the gist of it. He pats Sid's shoulder and heads for the locker room.

"Thanks, Alex," Sid calls after him, Alex's name sounding awkward in his mouth.

Alex turns around. "We friends now," he says with a wide smile. "Call me Sasha."

*

Alex turns it around in his mind, reads a little bit about the CWHL, and eventually brings it up with Mama.

A little over a week later, he catches Sid after practice and says, "Come over for dinner."

Sid says, "Um."

Alex grins at him. "Mama invite, want to talk to you. At seven."

"Don't subject him to your mother unprepared," Zhenya says.

"He doesn't need a babysitter," Alex shoots back. "And he'll be fine. Mama thinks he's a good influence." He turns to Sid. "You come?"

"Uh, yes?" Sid says.

"Good." Alex pats his shoulder. "I text you address."

Sid shows up right on time, with a bottle of wine and a two bouquets of flowers, one for Mama and one for Masha.

Mama gives Alex a pointed look, like she's recommending Alex follow Sid's example, as if he doesn't bring flowers all the time, and takes the flowers and wine with a smile for Sid.

Over dinner, between Mama's partial English vocabulary and Alex's more extensive but possibly still not quite enough of one, they explain Mama's plan to Sid. It'll take more time, more of an effort to get a lot of people working together, but it's doable.

"League want twenty-two million," Mama says. "Not that much for all of you. Time for sister."

Alex doesn't know Sid well enough yet to know exactly what the expression on his face means, but he thinks it's an agreement. "Twenty-two million," he says. He looks at Alex. "You think we can get that from our league's players?"

Alex smiles at him. "I put in one million," he says. "Only twenty-one more to go."

"Eighteen," Sid says. "I wanted to give them three."

"We do that easy," Alex promises, and then Sid throws himself into their plan with ideas about implementation and fundraising, how best to get the word out and how to present it to the CWHL board.

Masha leans over and kisses Alex's cheek. "That was a very nice thing to do for your captain."

Alex smiles at her. "I believe in women's sports. Maybe good for our children someday too."

Masha laughs brightly. "Right answer."

*

After his nap on the day after Christmas, Alex gathers up his parents and Masha and drives them all over to Sid's.

"Hi?" Sid makes the word into a question when he opens the door.

"Hello, Sid." Alex smiles brightly and hugs Sid.

Sid still seems confused, but he sort of hugs back, mostly pats Alex on the back. "What are you doing here?"

"We come to watch hockey with you," Alex says. "Too late for Russia game, but more games today. Mama make food."

"Uh, okay," Sid says. "Come in." He leads them into the house and into the living room where he introduces everyone to his parents and sister. Alex has met them all in passing before, at various events, but it's new for his family to meet them.

"Good to see everyone," Alex says. "We watch with you. I text Zhenya to come over too." He's already texted Zhenya twice, but he does it again from Sid's living room, getting Taylor to lean in for a selfie with him.

Zhenya scolds him for interrupting Sid's scarce family time, which isn't that scarce; they all know Taylor is staying until she has to go back to school. He also shows up half an hour later, and Masha, as the person in the room least invested in the hockey game on the screen, gets up to let him in.

"Can kick Sasha out," Zhenya says very seriously to Sid. "Not have to let him have his way."

Sid laughs the laugh that sounds like a giggle, drowning out Alex's protest. "It's good for Dad and Taylor to have someone to argue with about goaltending."

Alex wouldn't have to argue goaltending with them if they could just see how much better Finland's development program has gotten.

Traitorous Zhenya folds himself onto the floor next to Taylor, flicking at her ponytail. "Sasha have strange ideas about goalies."

"You all have wrong ideas about goalies," Alex says.

"I _am_ a goalie," Taylor says.

"I have many fifty goal seasons," Alex says. "I know how to get past goalies."

Taylor laughs. "I wouldn't want to try to stop you."

Sid smiles at her, and at Alex like he's done something right by making Taylor laugh.

*

Sid is not smiling the next day, when they're down by two against Alex's old team and both of those were power play goals.

"No more temper tantrums," Sid yells in the locker room at second intermission.

Alex is too angry and frustrated to point out that Sid isn't making his case with his own tantrum.

"When you throw a temper tantrum," Sid says, looking at Alex and Zhenya both, "they're getting power plays, and then they're scoring." He takes a few heaving breaths. "If you're mad, don't take penalties. Score some goals."

Alex has heard more inspiring speeches, but Sunshine draws a penalty two minutes into the third and Alex, with assists from Zhenya and Sid, manages to score on the resulting power play.

"Fucking right," Sid yells as he slams Alex into the glass. "Two more of those and we got this."

Alex gets one of the two more, Kuni the other, and they come out of the game with a win Alex is fiercely satisfied to get.

Mama, Papa, and Masha drove separately so they didn't have to wait around for Alex, but he comes out of the locker room to find Taylor waiting for Sid.

"Little Crosby," Alex greets her with a grin.

Taylor smiles up at him. "Big Ovechkin."

Alex laughs and hugs her. "Now you see how good I get goalies."

"Yes," Taylor says. "Even a really good one."

"Easier than some others," Alex says. "I have practice shooting on Holtby."

Taylor asks him about that, and Alex hangs around chatting with her until Zhenya emerges from the locker room to join them, and then Sid.

Sid hugs Taylor, and then keeps an arm around her shoulders. He nods at Alex and Zhenya. "Good third period."

It's not that Sid never hands out praise, but he gives it when earned, and it's a sharp change from the yelling earlier.

Alex nods back at him. "Two points."

Sid smiles. "Two points."

*

Alex comes out of the locker room after they lose game six of the ECF to find a mostly empty hallway, late enough that most of the families have already left. Taylor is the only person waiting around, and Alex checks his rapid stride to talk to her.

"Waiting for Sid?"

"Yes," she says.

"Could be a while," Alex says. Sid spent the most time with the media, the most time sitting in the locker room, the most time talking to the other guys.

Taylor shrugs. "I know."

Alex leans against the wall next to her. "Wait with you." He doesn't have to, but his parents are already at home and Sid and Taylor's parents were going to see the next game.

"I'm okay by myself," Taylor says.

"Maybe I'm not," Alex says.

"Okay," Taylor says. She flicks at something on her phone. "How do you feel about cat videos?"

Alex is chuckling through trying to explain the Russian narration on a video on his phone when Taylor stops paying attention to him and pushes away from the wall.

Alex looks up, and watches her wrap her arms around Sid, the way the blankness on Sid's face softens as he hugs her back.

Alex stops the video still playing on his phone and nods at Sid before he heads down the hallway and out of the building.

*

Mario hosts the end of year barbecue and pool party. Alex goes alone. Masha is already well into the tennis season and while there are plenty of wives and girlfriends around, it's not the kind of thing you take your parents to.

"Your sister is wearing a bikini," Alex says, when he runs into Sid at the food table. He can see Taylor over Sid's shoulder.

"I know," Sid says.

It's said so calmly that Alex raises his eyebrows and the stakes. "And flirting with Sunshine."

Sid says, "Probably," with a slight grimace.

"Not going to stop them?"

Sid shrugs and keeps putting food on his plate. "She's a grown woman."

Alex stares at him. If he had a sister, no matter how old, he wouldn't be okay with her flirting with his teammates.

Sid seems to catch on that Alex is expecting something else out of him. "She's been in college for a year," he says. "And she was in boarding school before that."

"Very trusting of Sunshine," Alex says since there isn't much else he can say about that.

"Taylor knows she can come get me if anyone does anything inappropriate, and the guys all know better anyway." Sid makes that same slight grimace. "And we had a very awkward conversation."

That Alex can readily believe. His curiosity gets the better of him and he asks, "What kind of awkward conversation?"

Sid looks directly at him, like he just remembered he's actually talking to Alex and not to himself. "Um."

Alex raises his eyebrows again. "Can keep secret," he offers. They've become friends of a sort, him and Sid, or he thinks they have.

"Ugh." Sid makes a face. "You can't tell _anyone_." He waits for Alex's promise before he says, "She said she always carries condoms." His voice adequately conveys his dismay even though he keeps the volume low.

Alex can't help it; he laughs. A lot.

Sid's mouth flattens out into a thin line, and his movements are jerky when he scoops potato salad onto his plate.

Alex tamps down his laughter. "Good she's being safe," he offers. "You tell her about CWHL?" They got the money, and Alex knows the complicated arrangements related to the endowment are somewhere close to being finalized.

Sid visibly relaxes as he grabs onto the change of subject. "Not yet. The announcement won't be until this summer." He means after the Finals, probably, but that's still too painful for either of them to say. "Mom knows, because she's on the board, but Taylor doesn't."

They move away from the table, chatting about that and eating until Duper interrupts and scolds them for looking so serious.

Later, Alex watches from the side of the pool while Taylor and Sunshine, Taylor looking gleeful and Sunshine nervous, conspire to dunk Sid.

Sid comes up spluttering and spends a precious moment in indecision before he goes after Taylor. Next to Alex, Zhenya elbows him with a grin, and they both jump into the pool to join in. Sid is perfectly capable of dealing with his sister, so Alex gets a grip on Sunshine, doing his best to wrestle him under the water.

He looks up at the other three, Sid trying to dunk Taylor, Zhenya siding with whoever's at a disadvantage at the moment, all three of them full of laughter, eyes bright with happiness, and thinks, fiercely, _Next year._ Next year they'll have this party with the Cup.


End file.
